Language and cultural barriers have made it difficult to poke around much in Japanese studios, but I have no doubt that many of those companies overwork their employees just as much (if not even more) than American and European companies.
It's worth noting that in isolation, overtime isn't an abusive practice that should be abolished at all costs. In fact, crunching for a few nights or even a couple of weeks can be exhilarating and productive. It's individual workaholism that contributes to a culture where people get dirty looks for leaving at 7pm, and that's a really tough problem to solve. How do you tell grown adults who want to stay nights and weekends that they're not allowed to? How do you create a culture where it's frowned upon? These are questions that have proven tough to answer, as hard as some companies have actually tried to find solutions. But what happens at companies like Naughty Dog is that nobody is
asked to crunch -- they just stay late because they're perfectionists, it's ingrained in their DNA, and it's part of the culture.
Also, in the video game industry, it's crunch combined with low pay, stress, fan toxicity, sexism both subtle and blatant, volatility, and painful mismanagement (see: BioWare) that can make for such a brutal recipe, especially when said crunch is extended over the course of weeks, months, or even years. Overtime in and of itself is not the root of all evil, especially when it's properly compensated.
PS - here's a throwback:
